Precipitation and Cementation of Deep-Sea Carbonate Sediments

Abstract

Inorganic precipitation of calcium carbonate, both as limestone cement and unconsolidated lutite, occurs in several types of deep-sea environments. While such carbonates account for only a small part of the total calcium carbonate budget, they appear to be more important quantitatively than shallow-water precipitates. Recognizing and understanding the processes of precipitation and cementation of carbonates can give added insights into deep-sea carbonate sedimentation prior to the evolution of calcareous nannoplankton and Zooplankton.

Carbonate cementation can affect the general physical (and engineering) properties of marine sediments. Sudden variations in such properties as shear strength may reflect cementation of that sediment. Techniques for recognizing small (but perhaps critically important) quantities of carbonate cement in deep-sea sediments should be developed.